During five days of
exercises, troops were trained in repulsing a massive airstrike,
combating an aircraft carrier, repelling a seaborne landing and
many other military activities on a vast scale.

The drills, dubbed “Vostok-2014,” are the largest since
the Soviet era. About 100,000 servicemen, up to 1,500 tanks, 120
aircraft, 5,000 pieces of weaponry, military and special
hardware, and up to 70 ships took part in the exercises.

Military observers from up to 30 countries were closely
monitoring the exercises. Military attachés from Angola, China,
Malaysia, North Korea, Peru, Venezuela, Zimbabwe and various
other countries attended the ultimate stage of the drills at
Skalisty Cape in Kamchatka, with Russia’s Defense Minister Sergey
Shoigu joining them. The supply units were to move 10,000 tons of
munitions, fuel, food supplies and other materials over long
distances, sometimes as far as thousands of kilometers.

Virtually the whole Russian Pacific Fleet was out at sea
performing various tasks: protection of the coastline from
seaborne assault, anti-submarine and anti-sabotage training,
mine-laying operations and a landing on Vrangel Island in the
Arctic – the first of its kind in the area. Marines and
paratroopers have passed survival tests in the Arctic Circle.

A squadron headed by the Varyag missile cruiser has fulfilled
training in eliminating a potential enemy task force in open sea.

Detachments operating S-300 missile defense systems conducted
successful tests, hitting targets from the most difficult
tail-chase guidance position. The time needed to carry out all
preparations to eliminate the target is only 15 seconds.

In the meantime, supersonic MiG-31 interceptors successfully
practiced the elimination of an attack by low-altitude cruise
missiles. President of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems,
Konstantin Sivkov, told the RIA Novosti news agency: “The US
Air Force has not trained on such tasks, whereas other countries
do not possess aircraft that could do anything similar.”

The Vostok-2014 maneuvers have proven that in an emergency
situation, Russia is capable of putting together a force that
would quickly suppress any aggression toward the country, Sivkov
said.

However, the maneuvers were marred by the deaths of three
soldiers who tried to rescue colleagues from a sinking vehicle.

A group of troops were conducting a landing on a wild shore, when
a large wave swept an armored vehicle containing 10 servicemen
off of a landing craft on Monday. Seven men inside managed to
escape the sinking vehicle, but two servicemen reportedly tried
to save the driver trapped inside and all three men died.

The incident is being investigated and the Defense Ministry has
posthumously nominated the three soldiers for state awards.